Unilever food hits certified palm oil target in Europe

Unilever has reached its certified palm oil target for its European food business. A new report published by the Anglo Dutch conglomerate/food brand maker shows that all palm oil directly sourced for its European foods business will be 100% traceable and certified sustainable by the end of this year.

Pier Luigi Sigismondi, Unilever Chief Supply Chain Officer, said: “2014 has been a defining year for our goal to create a more transparent palm oil industry. Knowing where it comes from is a critical step in the journey. The challenge is enormous and not easy to achieve but we are determined and can now report good progress. We want to share our learnings with the rest of the industry.”

Unilever now has visibility of around 1,800 crude palm oil mills, representing around two-thirds of all mills in the global palm oil industry and around 58% of its palm oil use is now traceable to known mills.

Sigismondi added: “This is about doing the right thing for our planet and our consumers because you cannot have a healthy business in an unhealthy world. We want to continue to meet our consumers’ every day needs in decades to come and this means sourcing in a fully sustainable way to future proof our supply chains. Halting deforestation is our end goal and this is what we work towards.” 

Picture credit: &copy &nbsp Ldambies&nbsp | Dreamstime com&nbsp - Oil Palm Fruits Photo